Improvement in railway switches



UNITED STATES PATENT CEEIGE.

ALFRED C. GARRATT, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN RAILWAY SWITCHES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 140,770, dated July 15,1873 application filed December 2, 1872.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Beit known that I, ALFRED (l. GARRATT, of Boston, in the county ofSuffolk andsState of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvementsin Railroad Switches, of which the following vis a specification:

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l represents a top view, and Fig. 2a side View, of my invention. Figs. 3 and 4 are parts in detail of thesame.

This invention belongs to that class of railroad switches in which theswitch automatically closes itself, unless forcibly held open by anattendant; and it consists in the combination of a vertical shaftprovided with a cam at its lower end and a crank at its upper end, (thecam being connected with the switch-rails by a suitable rod,).with afra-me located by the side of the track, in which frame the shaft isturned by the crank to open the switch, and automatically returned toplace by a spring connecting thegshaft and frame. The `frame is providedwith a latch or lock, which engages with the crank of the shaft andautomaticallyalocks it, when the switch is closed by the spring,thereby' preventing the same from accidental displacement, all of whichI will now proceed to de-V scribe.

In the accompanying drawings, Sheet No. 1, c represents the main tracks;b, the side tracks 5 and c, the sleepers, of a railroad, arranged asusual. Connected with the tracks a is a tie-rod or bar, d, to one end ofwhich is pivoted, or otherwise attached, one end of a curved arm or bar,c, the other end of said arm being connected with, so as to 'be operatedby, a cam or arm, f, secured to and partially revolved by a vertical rodor shaft, g, supported by and turning in the top h and bottom t' of aswitch-frame, provided with side posts k k and cross-beam le, orotherwise suitably connected with a switch-frame arranged as may bedesired. The top of the rod or shaft g extends horizontally above thetop h, and forms, or is provided with, a lever, g', which, on the en isprovided with a crank or other suitable handle, g. Attached to the top hat one end, and extending upward and outward transversely from it, is anarm-plate, m, the top or horizontal projecting portion of which isformed with` a slot, n, through which plays up and down one end of alatch, o, Fig. 4, which extends up over and down under the top of thearm or plate m, to the front of which the forward 'end of the latch o isconnected, so as to be held and yet play freely. The vertical rod orshaft g is supplied on its top, beneath the .top h, with a collar, q,and is provided on its upper portion with a spiral or other suitablespring, p, one end of which is attached to the rod g, and theother tothe frame k. On the top hof the stand is a stem, r, against which thelever' g is pressed and held by the operator while the rails a areswitched to the side track b,- a curved pivoted lever, s, Fig. 3, beingattached to the end of the top h for the purpose of more convenientlyholding the lever g while a train is being switched from the main to theside track.

The operation of my invention is as follows: The main track a'remainsclosed, and forms a continuous track, which can only be turned bypressing down the top of the forward end of the latch o, which raisesthe other end and allows the lever g to be turned out from under theplate m, so as to operate the rod g and tighten the spring p, andactuate the cam or arm j', by which the arm c, acting .on the tierod orbar d, causes the track c c to be drawn to one side and connect with theside track b b, thus opening the side track only so long as the lever gis held against the stem rr by the operator; for, as soon as he lets gohis hold on the lever, it is, by the action of the spring p, immediatelycarried back to and by the latch o, locked in its former position, andthe main track opened continuously. y

Having thus fully described my improvements, What I claim as myinvention and desire to have secured to me by Letters Patent, 1s-

The vertical shaft g, provided with the spring lo, crank g at its upperend, and cani or cranks j' at its lower end, the latter connected to thetra-ck by the rod e, in combination with the frame h, slotted arm m, andspring or latch o, all arranged and operating substantially asdescribed.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this 'specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALFRED U. GARRATT;

Witnesses:

CARROLL D. WEIGHT, SAMUEL M. BARTON.

